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The Sunpeak
In the records of King Cedras the Great, first of his line, it is written: And it came to pass that in the fifth year of the King, there came tales from the mountain northwards, speaking of a terrible being that smote the people of the villages of the mountain that they died. And the King spake, saying unto the people, who shall go forth unto the mountain northwards, that they might find the cause of this trouble? And a man stepped forward, whose name was Tananger, and spake, saying, I shall go, and my brothers and sisters also, and we shall stay this evil that it might smite the villages of the mountain no more. And the brothers and sisters of Tananger were six, three were his brothers, and three were his sisters, and they were seven in all, mighty warriors of valour who had fought with the King in the establishment of Raven. And he sent them, all together, with his blessing, into the land northwards, that they might stay the evil and perserve the lives of those who lived round about the mountain. Now in those days the mountain had no name, but it had a fearsome reputation, and man said that whosoever should set foot upon it would be smitten with a plague, that his hair would fall out, and his innards turn upon themselves, and blackness would pour forth from his mouth. And it came to pass that as Tananger and his brothers and sisters came unto the mountain, there was a village there, and the name of this village no man knows. For when they came upon the village, lo, there were none therein that lived, and all had been slain, men, women and children, even down to the suckling babe, and their cattle and their sheep and their dogs had been slain also, that none lived within the village. And Tananger spake unto his sister, who was gifted in the healing arts, saying, by what manner of weapon were this people slain? And his sister spake, saying, By a sword of fine worksmanship, wielded by a master of the sword, were these people slain. See how they lie in their homes, at their tables, in their beds. Whosoever hath slain these people, it hath been done by stealth and with swiftness. And it came to pass that the brothers and sisters of Tananger journeyed round about, and in each village near unto the mountain they found the same, that the people thereof had been slain by the sword that none survived. And it came to pass that after five days, when they had found no villager alive in all the land round about the mountain, that they determined to climb the mountain and find what terrible beast had slain the villagers. And they made camp that night in the hollow of the mountain. And it came to pass that in the night a being came unto them, having the form of a man but glowing with a bright burning light, that none could look directly upon him, and he bore in one hand a mighty sword of curious worksmanship. And the being spake unto Tananger and his company, saying, Behold, I am Goro-goro, and I am he who hath slain those round about this mountain, for behold, they were wicked, and thieves, and broke through and stole from me, and I have requited unto them that which they were owed. Now behold, I say unto you, depart from this place, and seek not to set foot upon the mountain, for behold, its curse lingers still, and on the day that thou settest thy foot upon the mountain, thou shalt surely die. And the figure departed from them, that none could see whither it goeth. And it came to pass that Tananger spake unto his kin, saying, Behold, we hath found the being that hath slain our countrymen, and behold, it layeth claim to this mountain, and forbiddeth that we should climb it, though all this country belongeth to the king, who hath commanded us that we should root out this wickedness. And behold, I say unto thee, I do not fear this being, nor its curses, nor its power, for mine heart and mine loyalty belong to the King, and him only shall I fear, and him only shall I obey. And it came to pass that the kin of Tananger bowed unto him, and swore to follow him unto the mountain. And it came to pass that there came unto the camp of Tananger another light, and this light was not like unto the first light that came upon them. For the first light was harsh and burned the eye, but this light was warm, and bright, and clear. And it came to pass that in the light they perceived three personages, who came towards them with empty hands of peace. And the first spake unto them, saying, Behold, I am the envoy of Pelor, god of the sun, and I come unto thee in greeting. And the second spake unto them, saying, Behold, I am the envoy of Heironeous, god of valour, and I come unto thee in greeting. And the third spake unto them, saying, Behold, I am the envoy of Kord, god of strength, and I come unto thee in greeting. And the first spake again, saying, Behold, the being Goro-goro whom thou hath met hath fallen from his place of glory and hath become wicked and corrupted, and must be taken from this earth. But behold, thy mortal powers cannot slay him, for in the day of his death shall terrible plagues be placed upon this land, and this mountain that thou beholdest shall become as the fire-mountains of the land northward, and the great city of Raven shall be consumed in that day. And Tananger wept, and spake unto the three envoys, saying unto them, Then what are we to do? Thou sayest, Destroy him, and thou sayest, Destroy him not. What then are we to do? And the second spake unto them, saying, Behold, I bear thee weapons, with which thou shall smite Goro-goro, and behold, he shall flee from thee, and shall pass into a chamber within the mountain, from whence he cannot flee. And the third spake unto them, saying, Behold, when thou shalt see Goro-goro in the chamber from whence he cannot flee, thou shall call upon my name, and shall speak the secret words I shall give thee, and all the mountain shall fill with light, and Goro-goro shall be trapped, and shall no more come out upon the villages round about the mountain, but he shall not die, and the mountain shall be preserved, and thy country with it. And the weapons which the second bore were seven, one for each of the company, and they were of fine worksmanship and great power, each with a name and with great power. And they were called Whisper, and Shadow, and Sunspear, and Whirlwind, and Angels' Bane, and Widowmaker, and Wraith. And the second spake, saying, These ye shall keep, and pass down to thy children and thy children's children, for Goro-goro must not die, and shall therefore live forever, and shall test the bars of his cage and fight all the days of his life to escape, for it is his purpose to cleanse the earth, though he knows it not. And the three figures faded, and passed away, and the light faded also, and Tananger and his kin were left in darkness. And they slept, and awoke, and it was the next day, and by each of them was a weapon, as they had seen in the vision in the night. And it came to pass that they arose, and went forth unto the mountain, and passed by the curse-markers that warned of danger, and they were surrounded round about by a glow which preserved them from the curse, that it hurt them not, and they were spared from the curse by the power of Kord. And it came to pass that they climbed a short way up the mountain, and found there a door, and passed within to the caves of the mountain. And these caves were unlike to any that Tananger had seen before, for the walls thereof were perfectly smooth, and the worksmanship thereof was exceedingly fine, greater even than the dwarves of the mountains of the Landspine. And it came to pass that they went unto the heart of the mountain, and there in a great cavern they found Goro-goro, the fallen angel. And with a terrible scream Goro-goro fell upon them, and smote them, but they withstood him, and smote him in return. And with Shadow the bow they smote him, and the arrows burned upon his flesh And with Sunspear the halberd they smote him, and the blade held him away from the kin of Tananger And with Whirlwind the dire flail they smote him, and the flail pulled his legs from beneath him. And with Angels' Bane the hammer they smote him, and the magic of the hammer drove the powers of Goro-goro far from him. And with Widowmaker the axe they smote him, and the blade broke the armour of Goro-goro. And with Wraith the rapier they smote him, and the weak places of his armour were sundered apart. And with Whisper the sword Tananger smote him, and Goro-goro did weep, and cry against Tananger and his kin, and did flee from before them, departing from the great chamber with haste. And Tananger and his kin did pursue Goro-goro, who fled higher and higher, seeking the heavens from whence he came, crying aloud in a language Tananger and his kin did not speak. And Goro-goro entered in unto a chamber from whence he could not escape, and Tananger spake with a loud voice the words he had been given, and the halls of the mountain filled with light, and the chamber into which Goro-goro had fled was sealed, that he could not escape. And it came to pass that the light did shine forth from the peak of the mountain, and night had fallen, that the light could be seen at an exceedingly great distance, even unto the city of Raven, and the King spoke, and named it Sunpeak, and thus it is still called. And it came to pass Tananger and his kin did return from the mountain, and unto them was given the keeping of the mountain, and the preservation of the weapons of the gods, against the evil day when Goro-goro would again break forth to destroy. Category:History